Author Spotlight: Close Enemy by Sandra Dailey

I’m delighted to have Sandra Daily visiting today to share her latest release, CLOSE ENEMY! Sandra is also sharing a bit about being a twin – part of a set – just like the twin brothers in Close Enemy and her first book, Common Enemy. Please help her feel welcome!

CLOSE ENEMY

Caleb McCrae is a powerful man with a broken soul. In six years, Leah was the only person to help him forget the painful memories, but only for one night. Now she seems to have disappeared. A mysterious letter arrives, and she’s in trouble…in more ways than one.

Leah Fletcher’s life is complicated. To care for her drug and alcohol addicted mother she works at a sleazy men’s club…until she finds out she’s pregnant and is framed for a crime that lands her in jail. When a stranger visits, she learns her troubles have just begun.

Bogdan Petrov has waited eleven years to get back the money Leah’s father stole from him. Despite her denials, he knows she’s hiding it. He’s arranged to infiltrate every part of her life until he gets what he wants, but soon realizes that an unknown person is doing the same to him.

Being Part of a Set:

Hi Abigail! Thanks for letting me drop by your beautiful blog today. I needed a break from promoting my new release, Close Enemy. You know how hectic the month before and after the release date can be.

Close Enemy is the sequel to my last book, Common Enemy. I guess you could say they’re a set. Both books are stand-alone, but they feature the same twin brothers, Caleb and Connor McCrae. Twins tend to sneak into a lot of my writing. I guess it’s because I’m a twin and it seems natural. Yes, I am part of a set.

People seem to be curious about twins. Guess what – we’re just as curious about you. When my sister and I were little we worried about how lonely single kids must be. We’d discuss all the advantages they missed out on, like sharing a wardrobe, books and records. We worked together on our chores and were invited to the same parties.

After we were married we realized that it wasn’t always easy for our husbands. Our closeness to each other wasn’t greater than our relationships to our spouses, but equally important. In times of triumph or tragedy, we frequently clung together, leaving them out. It takes a special kind of man to handle that, and we seem to have hit the jack-pot.

When our children were born we shared them as easily as we had our toys. They all grew up more like siblings than cousins and knew they had a back-up mom.

The greatest thing about being a twin is having someone you can be yourself with, not having to hold anything back, and never having to face life alone.

In this excerpt from Close Enemy, Caleb is reliving the worst tragedy of his life, wondering if he’ll ever deserve happiness:

The accident had been his fault no matter what the law said. There’d been no restitution to pay, no cure for his broken heart, no way to earn back his soul. Fingers of despair circled his throat and tightened. He couldn’t breathe.

Like a miracle, his brother walked into the room. Connor sat next to him and slid the album off his lap. When his hand touched Caleb’s back, he couldn’t stop himself. He grabbed Connor like a drowning man grabbing a branch. He held on tightly and let hot tears of anger and frustration fall.

“You’re really here. Why are you here?” Caleb wiped a sleeve across his eyes and sank into the sofa. He was grateful that masculine embarrassment didn’t exist between him and his twin.

“I’m just here for the day, but I can stay longer if you need me. I took a commuter flight to attend a deposition.”

“There’s no way I’d take you from your family.”

“You’re my family too, Cal.” Connor walked to the wet bar and made them each a tall glass of ice water. “I’ve got some time to kill, if you need to talk.”

My question to our guests: If you’re part of a set, how do you feel about it? If you’re a single kid, what are the advantages?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Sandra Dailey lives with her husband and mother in a small town in North Florida, far from the maddening crowds. Her children and grandchildren all live close and keep her ridiculously busy and active. Her passions are reading, writing, and crafts. Her addictions are coffee, chocolate, and football. Her aversions are cooking, housework and negative people. She loves to hear from fellow readers and writers, so get in touch.

Sandra, Loved your excerpt. I always wondered what it was like to be a twin. Never considered the bond being a challenge (for your husbands) when you married. Interesting. I am the opposite, an only child. It is lonely. You are right. But I married my best friend and that makes things so much better. Good Luck with your book. Sounds interesting!

Great blog. Unfortunately my twin and I don’t have a close relationship. We were always too very different people with very little in common. There were 9 kids in my family so I never felt lonely. 🙂 Good luck with the release, Sandra!

I’m one of those who are fascinated by twins. I can’t imagine being an only child, though sometimes being the youngest was lonely. Lonely or not, as long as I have siblings, someone besides my husband and kids always has my back and I have theirs.

Great post Sandra.
I’m not part of a set, but I do have two sisters. When I moved from England to Canada I missed them so much. That was hard to deal with.
I actually wanted twins when I had my kids, but wasn’t so lucky.
Good luck with the book it sounds great.